Cast Iron Wheel for Antique Singer Treadle (Foot-Powered) Sewing Machine Frame

Description

My husband and I have owned and restored over 1000 antique and vintage Singer sewing machines, and along the way we have accumulated a stock of old Singer parts. The parts aren’t doing anyone any good sitting in our workshop, so we have decided to send them on to where they’re needed.
The Singer Company manufactured treadle (foot-powered) sewing machines for about 100 years, from the 1850s until the 1950s. The foot pedals and the various frame parts on early treadles were made from cast iron, and so were the wheels. We often come across treadle frames with a missing wheel, and maybe you have, too.
The wheels were mostly made in two different widths, as measured across the outer rim
:
the oldest frames, those made prior to about 1890, used a fatter wheel measuring about nine-sixteenths of an inch across, and frames made after 1900 or so used a skinnier, three-eighths-inch wheel like this one. (Singer also made a half-inch wide wheel in the late 1890s, but they aren’t seen very often so we’re just going to ignore them to keep this simple.) The dimensions of this wheel are
:
Diameter
:
a smidgen over
one-and-one-quarter inches
Width (measured at the center hub)
:
one-half inch
Width (measured at the outer rim)
:
three-eighths of an inch
Center hole for the axle
:
one-quarter inch, and the original quarter-inch axle shown in the photos comes with the wheel
These things are easy to install but you do have to be careful because old cast iron is very brittle and easily broken. The trick is not to force the axle through your frame. Singer inserted a red-hot axle through the frame ends and then used a press to flatten one end of the axle to hold it in place. The trick to removing or installing the axle is to use a file to reduce the diameter of the axle on the flattened end so that it will slip easily through the holes in the frame.
Do not try to hammer it through!
Reduce the diameter with a file until it just slips through. You can see how my husband did this on one end of the axle as shown in the photos.
When you install this wheel and axle, use a dab of Gorilla Glue or something similar to hold the filed end of the axle in place in the frame.
I know all of this sounds complicated but it really isn’t hard to do.
This wheel and axle will also work on some treadle frames manufactured by companies other than Singer. Just measure the opening in the “fork” where the wheel goes to figure out if it will fit.
Important:
We have four wheels and axles available as this is written, so the parts you receive will probably not look like the ones in the photos, but the age, authenticity, and quality will be the same. These parts have been cleaned but not polished so they will match the patina of most of the antique treadles out there. Use 0000 steel wool to brighten them up if you prefer that look.
Please ask if you have questions! We are happy to help you.
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